​Garden Stories

​In the next few weeks I’m going to write about plants that have such unappealing names it’s a wonder they are offered by greenhouses and nurseries. It’s a testament to how good these plants are that they have overcome horrible common names. When at the garden center, don’t dismiss these after looking at their name tags. I’m placing these plants into five categories.

Falsies – These poor plants can’t have their own name and are declared a false something or other. It’s like saying my name is False Minnie after my grandmother. I would guess this is the equivalent of naming boys after fathers such as James II or junior. Usually these plants are not related to the true plant named. The ones that are worthy of consideration in our gardens are: False Indigo, False Forget-Me-Not, False Spirea, and False Sunflower.

Weeds – Yes there are weeds we want in our perennial beds. This category includes Milkweed, Bugleweed, Joe Pye Weed, and Sneezeweed.

Body Parts – I’ve seen explanations on these plants describing that the flower looks like something: Turtlehead, Dragonhead, Goats Beard, Bearded Iris, Black-eyed Susan, Prairie Skullcap, and Beards Tongue. That last one is a total mystery to me.

Worts -- What is a “wort” anyway? Webster defines it as a plant. So that makes sense; but to my ears it sounds disgusting. Some neat plants in this category: Ragwort, Lungwort, Spiderwort, Spearwort, and Sandwort. Any of these appeal to you on name alone?

Just Plain Scary – I just can’t understand why someone would name a perfectly fine plant any of the following names: Lizard Tail, Pig Squeak, Snake Root, Dead Nettle, and Gas Plant.

Luckily, we have the botanical names. So instead of saying a plant is a dead nettle (yuck), I can call it Lamium ‘Purple Dragon’. Much better. Watch for future posts on each of these categories for information on these plants.